Hunter on Kayak with catch stone carving

Taloyoak (formerly Spence Bay)

Taloyoak first became famous for its whalebone sculptures, which were large and rather fantastic in conception. The community style was dominated quickly by the work of one man, Karoo Ashevak, whose combination of the surreal and the whimsical produced powerfully haunting, yet amusing masterpieces. Some aspects of his style have been appropriated by other artists, but the switch to stone as the main carving material and the rise of new talents have led to more varied approaches.

Gjoa Haven.

The stone carvings of Gjoa Haven are, to a certain extent, influenced by the Taloyoak style.  This can be seen in the distortion and expressionism of human and spirit faces and bodies, and in the combination of different media such as stone, whalebone, ivory and musk-ox horn.  For some time, Gjoa Haven carvers worked with an imported translucent green stone but they now carve with the local, harder dark green and black stone.

Kugaaruk (Pelly Bay)

Kugaaruk Inuit art is best known for its ivory miniatures, which were for many years, encouraged by local missionaries. Small delicate works in ivory and antler, as well as stone carvings, are still produced today.

Baffin Region –Eastern Arctic.

The Baffin region includes the communities which made Inuit art famous: Cape Dorset, Lake Harbor, and Iqaluit. Serpentine, a hard stone with a composition similar to jade, ranging in color from light green to brown to black is the stone most used in this region. Most Inuit Art Galleries carry carvings from this area. The sculptural style is strongly stylized. There is often a portrayal of dramatic and emotionally charged shamanic or mythological images. Bears, caribou and muskox, are depicted realistically, but often in unusual poses with great exaggeration. Sculptures have soft, undulating outlines and are brilliantly polished.

Kivalliq Region.

Baker Lake is the most famous community in this region for Inuit Art. This area (northwest of the Hudson Bay) is filled with a very hard and dense volcanic stone known as basalt (prior to the glacier age this area was mountainous). Sculptural styles range from crude, primitive and simple with few details to strict naturalism. Additionally, the stone is not highly polished -- the artists preferring a dull and rough effect. Predominant subject themes are family/maternal scenes, muskox and spiritual themes, especially that of transformation. There is less art being created in this region and hence it is not always available in the galleries.

INUIT ART CARVINGS - MATERIALS AND METHODS

In most communities (other than Cape Dorset, where there are many quarries of serpentine stone) raw materials suitable for carving, are in short supply. Artists must travel great distances overland or by boat to get their stone.

Extracting the stone is very dangerous and physically demanding work. Kugluktuk carvers can only get their stone in the two summer months, when they can take a boat out on the Arctic Ocean. They then must scale an Island cliff or descend a riverbank to locate a suitable piece for carving. Using spikes, crow bars and drills, they pry off whatever chunk they can and then transport it back to their house work area or carving shed by boat and ATV.

The carver looks at the shape, coloration and composition of the stone (looking for mineral deposits) and determines what object he will sculpt. The necessary skills, perfected in the fashioning of traditional implements, have been passed down through generations of Inuit.  Most sculptures are produced today using a combination of hand and power tools. Saws, axes and adzes, hammers and chisels are used for the initial roughing out stages of a carving. Files, rasps, steel wool and sandpaper are used for fine work. Most artists finish their work by wet sanding, at least four to six times to get a good polished finish. Penknives and nails are used for detailed incising.